She is the distinguished recipient of the highly prestigious Anugerah Tokoh Akademik Bahasa Melayu 2024, a remarkable honour bestowed by the Ministry of Higher Education, Malaysia. She currently holds the Sultan Ibrahim Chair of Malay Studies at Beijing Foreign Studies University in China. The first milestone of her commendable journey began when she was conferred the Anugerah Penghargaan Makalah Jurnal Terbaik in the year 2021, a notable recognition by MAPIM-KPT.With a distinguished academic background, she holds a First Class Bachelor's Degree (Malay Language Programme) from the Department of Malay Studies, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Malaya (1989). Subsequent to her undergraduate studies, she embarked on a journey to acquire a Diploma in Education from the Faculty of Education, University of Malaya (1990) and henceforth, served as a dedicated teacher in a full-boarding school (SBP) in Kuala Lumpur. Her illustrious career as a lecturer commenced in 1996 following the completion of her master's degree and was further amplified when she was granted the Hadiah Latihan Cuti Belajar, enabling her to pursue her Ph.D in 1999. During her remarkable Ph.D journey, she was accorded an opportunity to partake in a six-month training at Leiden University, Netherlands, to learn the PRAAT software, a vital tool in her field of study at the Ph.D level, Acoustic Phonetics. Her exemplary skills in the Malay language led her to be appointed as a visiting lecturer at the Yunnan University of Nationalities, Kunming, China, and as a visiting professor at Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia. Her profound expertise in the Malay Language, Malay Studies and the Malay World has been acknowledged by the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, leading her to be entrusted with roles such as Head of the Phonetics/Phonology Panel, Panel Penilai Buku Terbaik MAPIM-KPT, Penilai Buku Terbitan MAPIM, Malay Language Editor, Penilai Geran Penyelidikan Fundamental Research Grant Schemes (FRGS), and Penilai Artikel for Scopus-indexed, ESCI and MyCite journals. She was also appointed to the editorial board of two prestigious journals in Indonesia and often referred to as an expert in research instruments. She has been invited as a Keynote Speaker and Invited Speaker in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia.From an administrative perspective, she has held notable positions such as Head of the Malay Language Department, Coordinator for the Academic Writing course, and Deputy Dean (Research, Value Creation, and Enterprise). Currently, she holds the esteemed position of Deputy Dean (Postgraduate Studies, Research & Innovation). She has also contributed significantly as a Course Developer for the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), University of Malaya for the course Introduction to Malay Language. In addition, she has taken on the responsibility as the Chairperson for the APM (Akademi Pengajian Melayu/ Academy of Malay Studies) social service for Sekolah Dalam Hospital (SDH), at the University Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC).

ChM Dr Joon Ching Juan is Professor of Catalysis and Nanotechnology at Nanotechnology and Catalysis Research Centre (NANOCAT), Universiti Malaya, Malaysia. Currently, he has been appointed as Chair of Frontier Natural World Research Cluster at Universiti Malaya and Head of International Co-operation relation at NANOCAT. He obtained his BSc (Hons) Chemical Technology (2003) and PhD in Chemistry (2007) degrees from the National University of Malaysia, Malaysia.             He has been actively involved in various research activities especially in the area of nanomaterial and catalysis. Most of his research activities are focused on understanding the and manipulating nano-structure to be applied in environmental and energy. Up to date, he has managed to publish more than 200 WoS publications with an h-index of 47 (10,348 citations). With his expertise and experience, he has received about RM 9,500,000 (ca. USD 2,000,000) grants from national, industry and international organizations such as The World Academy of Science Grant (TWAS, UNESCO), E-science fund (MOSTI), and industry grants. As a strong believer in research driven innovation, he has filed eight patents to be used in industries.             He is also the recipient of several prestigious awards and recognition including 2% Top Scientist in the World by Sandford University (2022-2020), Ten Outstanding Young Malaysian (2020) by Junior Chamber International,  Future Academician Award by Ministry of Education (2018), Malaysia Research Star Award by Ministry of Education (2017), National Young Scientist Award by Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (2016), outstanding paper award by Elsevier (2018), Pro Vice Chancellor Award in Teaching, Monash (2012), and just few to mention. Besides being engaged in teaching and research, he also serves as Fellow of Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC, UK), Chartered Chemist (CSci, UK), Chartered Scientist (CSci, UK), Member of Malaysia Institute of Chemistry (IKM), and others.             In term leadership and administration, he is elected as the President of Balai Ikhtisas Malaysia (BIM) which oversee all professional bodies, Treasurer of Federation of Asian Chemistry Society (FACS), National Representative/Associate member of IUPAC in Chemistry and the Environment Division, Associate Member of IUPAC in Chemical Research Applied to World Needs (CHEMRAWN), council member and honorary secretary of Malaysian Institute of Chemistry (IKM). In addition, he also appointed as radiation protection officer (RPO), chemical safety and security officer training (CSSO), deputy quality manager (DQM), National Focus Group Member Globally Harmonized System (GHS), National technical committee member of Nanotechnologies (ISO Standard), National committee Member, Industry Standards Committee on Environmental Management (ISC Z). He has conducted various courses, talks, keynote, and plenary lecture on chemical safety and security, green synthesis laboratory, water pollution, photocatalysis wastewater treatment, biofuel, bioenergy, etc. With his experience and expertise, he has also been appointed as consultant and advisor to many governments’ bodies and industries.

Dr. Asfarina's research lies at the confluence of computational and experimental pharmaceutical sciences, making significant contributions to the progression of drug discovery and the comprehension of molecular interactions. Her work incorporates computational methodologies such as docking and molecular dynamics simulations to craft and refine prospective drug candidates. She employs sophisticated simulation techniques to examine protein-ligand interactions, aiding in the prediction of molecular behavior within biological systems. She explores the binding mechanisms of drugs and other molecules to proteins, which is essential for grasping their therapeutic impacts and potential side effects. Additionally, she has played a role in studies addressing HIV-related stigma within healthcare environments and has contributed to the creation of metrics for assessing HIV activist identity. She genuinely welcomes the chance for collaboration and research partnerships with motivated individuals and academic research teams.